Monday, September 3, 2012

We'll Always Have New Orleans...

I keep getting updates from restaurants and landmarks in New Orleans on re-opening following the recent hurricane.

I can't help but think about the memorable time we had there last year on our Honeymoon.

New places with Jimmy are always an adventure. He likes to ask questions, make pals, and establish routines. He's much more of a planner than I. I adore this about him.

We really didn't know what to expect. We had never been. I guess we thought it would be like Charleston. It kind of was -- times 100. Everyone kept telling us it had culture. It had culture, alright.

The air surrounding our hotel smelled of fresh garbage. It was a interesting start as our cab driver dropped us off at the hotel on St. Charles.

We took it all in stride. Part of the experience. The strippers in the doorways of clubs on Bourbon Street. Yep, all in stride...

Everything we did was new, exciting -- and we were married! I was floating on a big, fluffy cloud.

The food. Oh my God. There were three days in the middle of the week when I was sick. I mean, sick. The rich, creamy, fatty food I had suddenly allowed myself to eat, after dieting for the wedding, was getting it's revenge on me.

I won't get into details. I'll just say, at one point I was brown-bagging Pepto. Fit right in.

Our NOLA native friend got us reservations at Emeril's Delmonico one night, midweek. This place was legit. We had like five different servers who all did different things. I ordered a fabulously juicy steak with an $8 side of mashed potatoes! But I was siiiiiccck. I made myself sit there and try to enjoy it.

The picture of me that Jimmy took that night... I was pale. Maybe green a little in the face.

Jimmy was already proving his husband worthiness. All I wanted to do go was back to the hotel and lie down. I told him he could go with his friend for the night since I was gonna be out for the count.

He said he wasn't going to leave me on our Honeymoon (right move -- he passed the test) but he'd just go sit in the hot tub.

This kid and hot tubs. I never understood it.

At one point, I went out to check on him -- he had a Miller Lite, a cigar and the biggest smile imaginable. Didn't take much.

He was so happy.

It was a wonderfully exhausting week. All kinds of memories made. So many drinks, so much food. We did some touristy stuff, visited a museum, and went to some local dives suggested by our friend.

We met some wonderful people!

We learned the locals are very loyal to their city.

We also got to see some of the areas most impacted by Katrina and the new lives many were forced to live. That stuff wasn't lost on us.

We'll always have a special place in our hearts for New Orleans.

When I see the places we visited showing up in my Facebook timeline, I take comfort in knowing we had that week.

I'm grateful for that time we had together exploring, laughing, walking, holding hands... pure joy.

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Oh, Hello.

We lived in South Carolina. Some stuff happened. We spent loads of time in a hospital. Now we live in Georgia. Life is not what we thought it would be, but that's okay. We're gonna make it after all... [cue Mary Tyler Moore hat toss].